May 29, 2016

The most important instrument in
taking a good photograph is your eye, heart and soul. Second is your camera.

A camera captures a moment in
time and records history. Manny Barrion Inumerable, a civil, engineer,
businessman and vintage camera collector, knows this by heart, that’s why he
opened in 2010 the Galleria Taal, the first vintage camera museum in the
Philippines. Being a photo hobbyist, I find my first camera museum experience
in the historic town of Taal, Batangas, quite personal and very educational.

Manny’s passion for photography,
started at an early age when he inherited a 1957 Royal Rangefinder (a Japanese
version of Leica) from his uncle who just died. Since then, his camera became
his constant companion, perhaps even his first great love. Though his mother
initially did not approve of his pastime, as it was expensive buying films
then, he remained firm and resolute. Even after he lost his first camera and
broke his heart into pieces, it never stopped him in pursuing his dream.

Several decades later (and after
years of constant searching thru photo fairs, flea markets abroad, antique shops, auction houses and online
auctions), he now owns more than 170 rare
cameras, some dating back to late 1800’s, that are on display at Galleria Taal,
the restored 1870 ancestral home of Domingo Ilagan and Maria Martinez, Manny’s
great grandparents.

The main staircase

The dining room

Manny’s favorite is the furniture
camera centerpiece Century Studio, the biggest among his collection. Made by
Century Camera, Co. between 1900-1907, it was the prime camera used by
professional photographers for portraiture.

A Hasselblad historical series.
Some Hasselblad were used on the moon surface in the late 60s to early 70s.

Sanderson “de luxe” with Taylor and Hobson lens and Koilos shutter. Camera was made by Sanderson Camera Works around 1902-1904 in England.

Kodak Bulleye No. 2. Made of wood with black leather covering, made by Eastman Kodak between 1895-1899 in Rochester, New York.

Rolleiflex “King of twin reflex cameras”, 1956-59, Germany. The cameras are popularly used by news correspondence during the Korean War in the 1950’s.

Ontoscope stereo camera. Made by Cornu Co., Paris France, circa 1925. It has a magazine of 11 film plates at the back that make stereoview photos in 3D.

Lancaster Instantograph camera. Made by J. Lancaster and Sons in Birmingham, England, in 1984. A well made polished mahogany folding field camera, it was once part of the “Photographic Collectors Club of Great Britain”.

Ansco No. 10 Model B, 1907, USA

Gundlach Banquet camera. Introduced in 1914 by Gindlach Optical Co., and uses 7” x 17” film sheet and holder to make panoramic pictures of landscapes.

Walter Tyler New Pattern Helioscopic Lantern “Magic Lantern”. The best known lantern and an early type of image projector produced by Walter Clement Tyler in 1887 in London, England. It has a pressed steel body (which looks like a miniature train) with ornamental vent holes along the base and a large brass projection end in which is mounted a condenser lens. In the later part of 18th century, illusionists used the magic lantern to trick people into thinking that they had summoned up spirits.

Kodak View camera 2D, 1905, Rochester, New York

Century Model 46, 1902, USA

Daguerreotype camera, 1860-1880, USA. The first commercially successful photographic process in the history of photography.

My baby - the limited edition Nikon FA Gold. A 24K gold-plated camera, made in 1984 in Japan, in celebration of Nikon being declared as European camera for that year (Camera Grand Prix). The body is covered with lizard skin, and has a matching gold plated lens. It was the first gold-plated model from Nikon that was made available for sale. With only 2,000 pieces made, it is now highly sought by camera collectors around the world because of its rarity and beauty. It is even listed on eBay for a whooping $12,000.

The museum also features a gallery of Philippine antiquarian photographs of the 1800’s, American Occupation, World War II, and the Liberation period.

Vendor, 1880, John Silva Collections

Street Car Manila, 1912, Manny Inumerable Collections

Tutuban Station, 1930, George Bonsay Collections

Manila City, 1950, John Tewell Collections

I got hungry after the tour. And it’s good that they also serve native delicious food.

Taal’s heritage cuisine - adobo sa dilaw and suman

Manny’s impressive camera collection is his legacy for the youth of today. It serves as a gentle reminder that a camera will always be a useful gear, especially in times we fail to put stories in words.

And that it’s okay to shoot anyone, particularly those
addicted to selfies.

May 18, 2016

A
friend, who was a little heartbroken, asked me for an advice on what to do with
someone she likes but feels doesn’t return the same feeling. I laughed and said
to just listen to James Blunt’s You’re
Beautiful, which started playing on my tablet as if on cue. The last line
pretty much sums up what to do when reality takes over a dream.

I
added that the serenity and green salad at Hacienda Isabella will also help her
move on. I promised.

A sprawling 4.5 hectare bed and breakfast place and event’s venue in Indang, Cavite, Hacienda Isabella is a beautiful weekend get-away and a perfect venue for those who want to celebrate special personal milestones and occasions. The hacienda, which used to be a coffee plantation and farmhouse, is owned by the Pop Diva Kuh Ledesma and was named after her only daughter Isabella.

I am quite fascinated with the natural greenery of the hacienda – the trees, lawn, flowers and plants. They are not only relaxing to the eyes, they also evoke romance. No doubt it has become one of the most sough-after garden wedding venues among the affluent members of the alta sociedad.

The main house of the hacienda has gorgeous living and dining rooms with terracotta tiled floors and adorned with wooden furniture, chandeliers, and stunning artworks and pieces. I got enamored with the eroded Mona Lisa, which looks even more mysterious than the one originally painted by Da Vinci.

Aside from the main house, there are several villas (Marrakech, Agua, Constantino, Woodhouse, Chinois, Rosa, Alto) with over 50 Filipino-Balinese-Moroccan-inspired guest rooms that are spread over the hacienda. They are mainly to accommodate big groups, especially when there is a wedding ceremony.

Daybeds are ample too. Anytime, anyone could sleep around anywhere.

The dining experience at the hacienda is like going to war. One will most likely surrender. This is because the quantity of their gastronomic food good for two is enough to feed a family of five. Their healthy and delicious green salad alone with Caesar dressing is enough to make one believe in love again. I actually clapped in glee the moment I saw the attractive salad presentation.

Since Kuh isn’t only a chanteuse but also an artist, expect to find more paintings, vintage luggage, old cameras, antiques, heirloom decors and creative designs in every corner of the hacienda. She simply has that eye for beauty in objects that others might find already outdated or broken.

Behind the main house is the pool area. It is surrounded with real sands to give it an almost beach-like feel. It’s refreshing to just swim and momentarily forget all my work deadlines.

But beyond its nostalgic elegance, what makes Hacienda Isabella endearing is how it pays homage to God. The Bible passages, religious quotes and sayings I’ve seen inside gently reminded me that only three things endure in this world - hope, faith and love. Definitely not LV, iphone or Lamborghini Veneno Roadster.

And If
I humbly follow the way of God, maybe someday everything will fall into place.